Energy Efficiency Certificate

Property Description

New penthouses for sale in La Duquesa, situated walking distance from the charming marina with its sandy beaches or to the traditional town of Sabinillas. Located between Sotogrande and Marbella at only 35 km from Gibraltar and 85 km from Malaga airport. The development features a modern Mediterranean style village surrounded by tropical landscaped gardens, communal swimming pool areas for adults and children with showers and toilets, underground parking spaces and storeroom. All properties comprise of two double bedrooms with fitted wardrobes, two bathrooms one of which is en suite, fully equipped kitchens, bright living rooms and sunny terraces.

It would be easy to write nothing here. Nada. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Because come on, admit it - have you heard of La Duquesa? If you live on the Costa del Sol you will have, but even then you might be hard pressed to know where it is, what it's like or offer up any nuggets on its reputation. That's because La Duquesa has, rightly or wrongly, been overshadowed by its more prestigious neighbours...which are?

OK, we'll help you out. La Duquesa is next to the old coastal town of Sabinillas, near to the inland town of Manilva and a few kilometres west of Estepona. It's a largely modern collection of hotels, villas and apartment developments, centred around the La Duquesa sports marina, which is rapidly enhancing its reputation as one of the Coast's finest ports. But other than that? It seems La Duquesa has so little to write home about, it may as well put down its pen...

Which would be a mistake, because La Duquesa could pen the next Don Quixote based upon its attractions. It has achieved the Holy Grail for property developers and home hunters - it remains largely unspoilt and unknown, but at the same time has developed a thriving community, a robust property market and a wealth of attractions for all ages. Its location - a 30-minute drive to Gibraltar and some 45 minutes from Málaga - is hard to top, and its miles of white sandy beaches, its mountainous backdrop and its stunning port combine to make La Duquesa a true 'best-kept secret'.

If the Costa del Sol could be theoretically broken into two parts, the sensible location for the split should be just south of Estepona, because this is where things start to change noticeably. The traffic eases, the roadside billboards become less garish, and the landscape becomes more dramatic. Here, the pace of development has lagged a few years behind the rest of the coast, yet La Duquesa has its eye on the 'New Puerto Banus' crown, thanks to its excellent port and abundance of properties, shops, restaurants and bars. All the attractions, none of the stigma - that's the goal for La Duquesa.

The much-vaunted quality of life that's one of the Costa del Sol's key attractions is, of course, evident wherever you tread, La Duquesa has none of the drawbacks to beautiful, fulfilling life, and all of the benefits.

The area itself is an organised mesh of large apartments, residential complexes with shared pools and gardens, excellent cafés serving a mixture of classic Spanish cuisine and health-conscious light lunches, laid-back bars, exquisite restaurants and highly rated international schools. But it's outdoors where your days at La Duquesa become truly enjoyable. The sports marina is a haven for boating enthusiasts, while the La Duquesa Golf and Country Club is one of the region's most technically accomplished - and beautiful - courses. There are plenty of other golf courses nearby, as well as half-deserted beaches, even in high season.

Life here is laid-back, with just enough going on in La Duquesa itself, or nearby, to keep all ages happy and content.

Evening pursuits in La Duquesa are dominated by the marina. There is a great choice of restaurants on the port, including cuisine from all over the world, making this a truly impressive location for a night out. Of course, a luxurious port, lined with stunning yachts, high-end sports cars and exclusive restaurants would be missing a trick if it didn't also boast an offering of bars and clubs for the patrons too, and La Duquesa doesn't disappoint.

Well, it kind of does, in that there are no traditional Spanish bars or affordable 'pub-style' boozers - a certain type of clientele is taken care of, while the rest aren't - but La Duquesa does not want to become yet A.N. Other Costa resort, so has been extremely careful over the image it wishes to project to the world. It's a ploy that certainly works.

We're here to help you

If you've decided to buy a home on the Costa del Sol, but you're not quite sure where, our brief and independently written area guides are a great place to start. But between us we know the region inside out, so whatever you'd like to know, just ask. It's what we're here for!